---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think that words are often extraneous…"
description: "\"I think that words are often extraneous to what I do.\" — Howard Hodgkin"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/howard-hodgkin-17509_language_i-think-that-words-are-often-extraneous_2813335.jpg"
---

#  I think that words are often extraneous to what I do.

![“I think that words are often extraneous to what I do.” quote by Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/howard-hodgkin-17509_language_i-think-that-words-are-often-extraneous_2813335.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/howard-hodgkin-17509_language_i-think-that-words-are-often-extraneous_2813335.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/howard-hodgkin-17509_language_i-think-that-words-are-often-extraneous_2813335.jpg)

> “I think that words are often extraneous to what I do.”

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Suggests that visual expression often transcends verbal description, making words unnecessary.

**In simple terms:** Art can speak without words.

Key Takeaway

Trust visual intuition over verbal explanation.

Themes

art communication expression

Mood

contemplative artistic

Type

creative philosophical

When to use this quote

- painting
- gallery shows
- art education
- creative workshops

Key Concepts

visual language creativity intuition

Questions to Reflect On

- When is language essential in art?
- How does silence shape perception?

A Different Perspective

May limit verbal discourse in collaborative settings.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Extraneous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extraneous-1154915/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think/) [Think Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-words-595922/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words/) [Words Extraneous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/words-extraneous-3535829/)

## Related quotes

> [I think words come between the spectator and the picture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-think-words-come-between-the-spectator-and-the-picture/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [My parents never got carried away with the extraneous elements of being in the business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haley-joel-osment/my-parents-never-got-carried-away-with-the-extraneous-elements-of/)

[Haley Joel Osment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haley-joel-osment/)

> [“does not ingenuity consist in the finding or creating of connections between apparently extraneous orders of ideas?)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/primo-levi/does-not-ingenuity-consist-in-the-finding-or-creating-of-connections/)

[Primo Levi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/primo-levi/)

> [“He was notorious for cutting short extraneous verbiage from over-loquacious barristers".”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryce-courtenay/he-was-notorious-for-cutting-short-extraneous-verbiage-from-over/)

[Bryce Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryce-courtenay/)

> [He knew he couldn't tell stories, that he always included extraneous details &amp; tangents that interested only him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/he-knew-he-couldn-t-tell-stories-that-he-always-included-extraneous/)

[John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/)

> [“The world was full of extraneous rubbish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-robyn/the-world-was-full-of-extraneous-rubbish/)

[Satya Robyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-robyn/)

> [You have to decide what is extraneous and what is central. There is always more to tell. If you want to have a finished…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adele-logan-alexander/you-have-to-decide-what-is-extraneous-and-what-is-central-there-is/)

[Adele Logan Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adele-logan-alexander/)

> [“The extraneous duties, in a sense, were the job.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-clancy/the-extraneous-duties-in-a-sense-were-the-job/)

[Tom Clancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-clancy/)

> [I'm trying always to leave out what I think is extraneous. And to find what I think is the most wonderful language to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-tillman/i-m-trying-always-to-leave-out-what-i-think-is-extraneous-and-to-find/)

[Lynne Tillman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-tillman/)

> [For God does not want to save us by our own but by an extraneous righteousness, one that does not originate in ourselves but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/for-god-does-not-want-to-save-us-by-our-own-but-by-an-extraneous/)

[Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/)

> [“Do you know why God invented writers? Because he loves a good story. And he doesn't give a damn about the words. Words are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-moehringer-2/do-you-know-why-god-invented-writers-because-he-loves-a-good-story/)

[J.R. Moehringer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-moehringer-2/)

> [We are what our thoughts have made us; so take care about what you think. Words are secondary. Thoughts live; they travel far.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-are-what-our-thoughts-have-made-us-so-take-care-about-what-you/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“We should be able to time travel," he said. "Back to an age when society was kinder to the Rubenesque woman." "Hmph." I wasn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justine-elyot/we-should-be-able-to-time-travel-he-said-back-to-an-age-when-society/)

[Justine Elyot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justine-elyot/)

> [The thoughts we think and the words we speak creates our experiences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-hay/the-thoughts-we-think-and-the-words-we-speak-creates-our-experiences/)

[Louise Hay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-hay/)

> [“I used to think that words and music could change the world, but look at the people who have made it. You see their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolee-dean/i-used-to-think-that-words-and-music-could-change-the-world-but-look/)

[Carolee Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carolee-dean/)

## More by Howard Hodgkin

> [My pictures really finish themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/my-pictures-really-finish-themselves/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [To be a painter now is to be part of a very small, endangered species.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/to-be-a-painter-now-is-to-be-part-of-a-very-small-endangered-species/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [The only way an artist can communicate with the world at large is on the level of feeling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/the-only-way-an-artist-can-communicate-with-the-world-at-large-is-on/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [I don't think you can lightly paint a picture. It's an activity I take very seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-don-t-think-you-can-lightly-paint-a-picture-it-s-an-activity-i-take/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [I never think that anything I do is courageous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-never-think-that-anything-i-do-is-courageous/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [I dont think you can lightly paint a picture. Its an activity I take very seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-dont-think-you-can-lightly-paint-a-picture-its-an-activity-i-take/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [In the United States there has been a kind of a structure in the Modern art world. The New York School was nearly a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/in-the-united-states-there-has-been-a-kind-of-a-structure-in-the/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [I'm very envious of the few artists who are any good and still do portraits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-m-very-envious-of-the-few-artists-who-are-any-good-and-still-do/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [I am isolated as an artist, not as a person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-am-isolated-as-an-artist-not-as-a-person/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [Matisse was very clear about saying that you have to blow your own trumpet and explain yourself, which I think has been slightly forgotten.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/matisse-was-very-clear-about-saying-that-you-have-to-blow-your-own/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [It takes a long time for the gleam in the eye to turn into something solid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/it-takes-a-long-time-for-the-gleam-in-the-eye-to-turn-into-something/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [I fell through a crack for years. Historically, I am a nothing because I fit in no category. I can only be me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-fell-through-a-crack-for-years-historically-i-am-a-nothing-because/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [I find old copies of National Gallery catalogues, which are written in the dryest possible prose, infinitely soothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-find-old-copies-of-national-gallery-catalogues-which-are-written-in/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [Eventually, a collection ceases to be a personal indulgence and assumes its own identity. In fact, it becomes a thing in its own right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/eventually-a-collection-ceases-to-be-a-personal-indulgence-and/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

> [I'm vulnerable to criticism. Any artist is, because you work alone in your studio and, until recently, critics were the only way you'd get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-m-vulnerable-to-criticism-any-artist-is-because-you-work-alone-in/)

[Howard Hodgkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

[Explore all 37 Howard Hodgkin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/)

## More Language quotes

> [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/)

[Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/)

> [Usually male directors have to use foul language to get the job done. But I never came down to that level as being a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-khosla-kumar/usually-male-directors-have-to-use-foul-language-to-get-the-job-done/)

[Divya Khosla Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-khosla-kumar/)

> [The problem posed by indirect speech acts is the problem of how it is possible for the speaker to say one thing and mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-searle/the-problem-posed-by-indirect-speech-acts-is-the-problem-of-how-it-is/)

[John Searle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-searle/)

> [A man walks down the street. It's a street in a strange world. Maybe it's the third world. Maybe it's his first time around.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/a-man-walks-down-the-street-it-s-a-street-in-a-strange-world-maybe-it/)

[Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/)

> [“I only have two words to say More or Less”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timbur/i-only-have-two-words-to-say-more-or-less/)

[TimBur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timbur/)

> [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/)

[Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/)

> [I am attracted to looking at the different things language can mean even in one sometimes quite ordinary utterance. Writing is partly about listening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rae-armantrout/i-am-attracted-to-looking-at-the-different-things-language-can-mean/)

[Rae Armantrout](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rae-armantrout/)

> [What is music? Music is language. A human being wants to express ideas in this language, but not ideas that can be translated into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-webern/what-is-music-music-is-language-a-human-being-wants-to-express-ideas/)

[Anton Webern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-webern/)

> [You're beautiful, cute, pretty, gorgeous, and fuck.. I ran out of words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/you-re-beautiful-cute-pretty-gorgeous-and-fuck-i-ran-out-of-words/)

[Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/)

> [The world has a soul and whoever understands that soul can also understand the language of many things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-world-has-a-soul-and-whoever-understands-that-soul-can-also/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [“The words for what I want to say right now don't exist. Everything sounds…so cliché.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelly-crane/the-words-for-what-i-want-to-say-right-now-don-t-exist-everything/)

[Shelly Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelly-crane/)

> [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will or against his will he draws his portrait to the eye of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-cannot-speak-but-he-judges-himself-with-his-will-or-against-his/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [Words can kill you trust towards someone, mind you language people, every reaction had its consequence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/words-can-kill-you-trust-towards-someone-mind-you-language-people/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Finxerunt animi, raro et perpauca loquentis. (To action little, less to words inclinded.)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/finxerunt-animi-raro-et-perpauca-loquentis-to-action-little-less-to/)

[Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/)

> [For comedy action, I must know the language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sammo-hung/for-comedy-action-i-must-know-the-language/)

[Sammo Hung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sammo-hung/)

[Browse all 21,951 Language quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I think that words are often extraneous to what I do.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Howard Hodgkin"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-think-that-words-are-often-extraneous-to-what-i-do/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Language"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-think-that-words-are-often-extraneous-to-what-i-do/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/howard-hodgkin-17509_language_i-think-that-words-are-often-extraneous_2813335.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/howard-hodgkin-17509_language_i-think-that-words-are-often-extraneous_2813335.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/194/howard-hodgkin-17509_language_i-think-that-words-are-often-extraneous_2813335.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I think that words are often extraneous to what I do.” — Howard Hodgkin",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Howard Hodgkin",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-hodgkin/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I think that words are often...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-think-that-words-are-often-extraneous-to-what-i-do/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-hodgkin/i-think-that-words-are-often-extraneous-to-what-i-do/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
